Amanda-Knowles.com provides an online portfolio of work from my various experiences in the journalism industry: design clips, photography, Web projects and writing samples that represent my professional experience.

Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington, D.C.

All examples of design, photography or writing showcased or included within this Web site are my work unless otherwise marked. Additionally, the design of this site was created by me and hand-coded using HTML.

Path to Journalism
Growing up in Eugene, Ore., I first became interested in journalism while working as a photographer for my high school yearbook. At first, I hoped to become a photojournalist, aspiring to land a dream job at National Geographic or Rolling Stone magazine. Though I still practice photography, my interests soon turned toward writing.

I attended Allegheny College, in Meadville, Pa., and earned a B.A. in English with minors in American History and Spanish. While at Allegheny, I worked on the student-run newspaper, The Campus; I started as a staff writer, spent a year as news editor, and became opinion editor my senior year. That year, I discovered news page design. In addition to my work with The Campus, I interned with the local daily newspaper, The Meadville Tribune. After a knee injury left me confined to a desk, my reporting internship quickly became an exercise in page design and my interest in the craft blossomed.

After graduation I took an internship at The Erie Times-News, a leading Pennsylvania daily. I worked nights as a copy editor and news page designer and the experience was invaluable. Later, I returned to the Meadville Tribune to work full-time on the copy and design desk. At the Tribune, I was able to take a very hands-on approach to many aspects of news production. Because of the paper's small size, my involvement ranged from daily editorial meetings and story selection, to art selection and photo editing, to copy editing and page design, and also included Web tasks and the creation of a nightly radio broadcast of the next day's top headlines.

A Future in Media
Eventually I decided to go back to school and study for a master's degree in print journalism. American University's School of Communication in Washington, D.C., offered me the opportunity to study the history, theory and practice of journalism's many aspects. In addition to a heavy emphasis on reporting, the curriculum boasted classes in digital skills, online publications, magazine writing, journalism law and ethics, and other topics such as foreign policy and the press, and public affairs journalism. Although my interest in editing and design has not faded, the graduate program opened my eyes to new prospects and encouraged me to broaden my horizons.

Following completion of my master's program, I interned at the newly reopened Newseum on Pennsylvania Ave., working as a copy editor in the Exhibit Development department. I then took a job with Newspaper Association of America where I currently work as Web Editor. Our team is focused on growing the association's presence on the Web in an effort to support the goals of NAA. The job allows me to edit and manage Web content, engage in social media outreach and to help shape the association's overall Web strategy. Working on the Web is exciting and affords the opportunity to be in a constant state of learning in order to keep up with fast-evolving trends. And, I enjoy the opportunity to explore online journalism while working for an association focused on ensuring the future of the newspaper.

There are those who say print journalism is on its way out the door for good. I disagree. There's no doubt that the print journalism of today will not likely be the print journalism of tomorrow, but I'm confident the craft will survive the changing media landscape as it has survived drastic changes in the past. And, I look forward to being a part of that evolution.

For more about my background and experience, take a look at my résumé.